Legislation would hike Delta water headed south

Thursday

Jan 30, 2014 at 12:01 AM

Following through on a pledge made last week, three south San Joaquin Valley congressmen introduced legislation Wednesday to increase the amount of water pumped south from the Delta and to block the restoration of the San Joaquin River.

The Record

Following through on a pledge made last week, three south San Joaquin Valley congressmen introduced legislation Wednesday to increase the amount of water pumped south from the Delta and to block the restoration of the San Joaquin River.

While the language of H.R. 3964 was not yet available, Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, said the bill would restore the reliability of water supplies from the Delta and would reform federal environmental laws that have sometimes restricted how much water can be pumped south.

Valadao - along with Reps. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia, and Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield - first promoted the plan last week in a news conference that included House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. Earlier this week, the Republicans unsuccessfully attempted to attach their proposal to the farm bill.

This effort is not new, however. The water bill is reminiscent of one that passed the House in 2012 and died in the Senate.

"Families and farmers are not receiving the water they need to meet their basic, everyday needs," Valadao said Wednesday.

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat, sternly criticized the new bill, calling it an "irresponsible" proposal that would be "profoundly dangerous" for California by undermining state law and ending any possibility of a balanced solution to the Delta's problems.

Feinstein was an architect of the settlement agreement that paved the way for the restoration of the San Joaquin, ending an 18-year legal battle.

She said she had offered to work with the representatives to address water-supply concerns, and was disappointed in their decision to introduce legislation.